Ugh. (Off-Topic)

by CruelLEGACEY , Toronto, Friday, December 29, 2017, 15:25 (2314 days ago) @ Kermit

I have no interest in think pieces about current politics and how this movie fits into all that.

Too bad. TLJ is great because it sits firmly in today's culture. Even manages to raise some pretty interesting questions about it, too.

Are you sure you’re not talking about the best movie of the year—GET OUT? I know the current fad is to explicate everything’s political subtext and how it reflects trendy cultural issues, but that’s a negative trend for the creation of art, all of which needn’t carry those particular weights (there are other important weights to carry). If I didn’t make clear, I reject the baby boomer thesis in that article you posted specifically because Star Wars’ popularity and uniqueness sprung from its universality and its mining of archetypes not bound by one culture or one time—that these stories take place a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away is essential not just to their appeal but to their identity. My quick take is that TLJ is not a great movie, but if it is judged to be one 40 years from now I bet it’ll be despite whatever questions it may raise about our moment. To the extent that it does sit firmly in today’s culture it will be considered more of an artifact than art.

I’m not even sure these reviewers are necessarily correct in their “deep” analysis—many are predisposed or have be trained to view everything through a certain lens—my problems with the film have more to do with basic failures of narrative and consistency. There’s no problem with subverting some of the expectations of Star Wars fans, but Johnson makes a fetish out of subversion—practically subverting the whole enterprise out of existence, which begs the question—what’s the point of Star Wars movie? I think either he didn’t understand the point, or he wasn’t up to the task of riding that particular beast.

BTW, I hope you and your family had a wonderful holiday. <3

I didn't find anything in the movie to be overly reflective of "today's culture" or anything like that. I did find it relevant, but in ways that I'd argue are more universal. I think the movie did a nice job of exploring the tensions that can exist between generations. The disappointment that younger generations feel when they realize that their "heroes" are not the super-human beings they thought they were. The grief that elders face when they realize they've repeated the mistakes of their forefathers. The way younger generations must force themselves to break out from underneath their elders and build their own lives, without losing sight of the fact that their elders often do know better. That the same drive and determination that makes youth so powerful can also lead to reckless mistakes and dire consequences.

The common critique against TLJ is that it "throws away everything that Star Wars is about", or something along those lines. I didn't get that from the movie at all. To me, TLJ perfectly retained the essence and the meaning behind Star Wars. What it cast aside was the misplaced emphasis that so many fans have put towards certain characters. The message of Star Wars can be found in Luke Skywalkers ACTIONS... not in "the man himself". It's easy for us to forget that Luke was always portrayed as someone who was prone to giving up, that he has a dark side to his temperament, and that he gets things wrong at least as often as he gets things right. But when it really counts, he overcomes those weaknesses. And his character in TLJ is 100% in keeping with those traits.